China syndrome

Not content with ensuring the de-development of the United States economy, now Myron Ebell has taken to advising the Chinese government:

Not buying it: While China may be increasing wind turbine and solar panel manufacturing to grow its economy, some people feel that it isn't as interested in applying the more expensive technology at home.

"It is impossible to tell why they are investing anything at all in [wind farms and solar power plants], which are not competitive with coal," said Myron Ebell, an energy analystknow-nothing lying lumpsucker at the Competitive Enterprise Institute, a conservative research and advocacy group. "My guess is that it's window dressing for the West."

Ebell said China is excelling at making renewable energy parts for the same reason they are excelling at making all sorts of other things: low cost, high skilled labor; weak environmental laws; and cheap energy.

The Chinese, Ebell believes, are simply using the West's fascination with wind and solar as a chance to sell it products.

Reporter Steve Hargreaves for CNN blathered:

Indeed, while China has surpassed the United States when it comes to making the equipment, it has not yet caught it in terms of renewable energy production.

In 2009 China could produce 25 gigawatts of wind power and under 1 gigawatt of solar, according to Ernst & Young. The United States could produce 35 gigawatts of wind and 2 gigawatts of solar.

Errr, aren't you forgetting the 190 gigawatts of renewable hydro-power vs somewhat less in the United States.

This is exactly the sort of sloppy mis-reporting we can expect from a reporter who has Myron Ebell in his phone book who knows perfectly well the costs of coal in terms of mining deaths in China and the fact that their crappy coal is (a) a limited resource, and (b) not distributed everywhere in the country where you need it for electricity.

Why bother trucking this stuff thousands of miles when you can get the electricity you need from the sky? That's why.

This is the future -- unless Myron Ebell is successful at killing it first.